Alternative TitlesEnglish: Descendants of Darkness Synonyms: 闇の末裔, Descendants of Darkness, Descent into Darkness, The Darker Descendant Japanese: 闇の末裔
Information
Type: TV
Episodes: 13
Status: Finished Airing
Aired: Oct 2, 2000 to Dec 18, 2000
Duration:
23 min. per episode Rating:
PG-13 - Teens 13 or older
L represents licensing company
StatisticsScore: 7.531 (scored by 5667 users)
Ranked: #9432
Popularity: #449
Members: 9,449
Favorites: 193 1 indicates a weighted score
My Info
Popular Tags
action comedy drama fantasy horror shounen-ai supernatural |
SynopsisEven after death, life is full of paperwork and criminals. Tsuzuki Asato is a 26 year old, happy-go-lucky, and dorky shinigami (god of death) whose job is to makes sure that those who are dead remain dead and stay in their proper realms. Even though he's had this job for over 70 years, he is in the worst division with horrible pay. He also has a knack for not keeping partners (since shinigami work in pairs), but now he seems to have one that will stick around; stubborn, smart-mouthed, serious and defensive 16 year old, Kurosaki Hisoka. With each case they investigate, they come closer to the conspiracies of the serial killer Dr. Muraki Kazutaka. Tsuzuki's relationship with Hisoka is growing stronger and closer...but there is a dark past to how Tsuzuki died that will not give him peace. (Source: ANN) |
Related AnimeAdaptation: Yami no Matsuei
Characters & Voice Actors
Staff
Reviews
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darkadonis
26 of 35 people found this review helpful
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13 of 13 episodes seen
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| Overall |
9 |
| Story |
7 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Character |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
Note: This review has been updated to be consistent with my changing views on anime.
Descendants of Darkness is based on the manga of the same name. It follows four major story arcs of the manga. Three episodes comprise each of the first three arcs while the last four episodes focus on the fourth. Since the anime leaves off where the manga caries on (the manga isn't finished either), the ending doesn't really offer a true conclusion and a lot of questions are left unanswered. Fans of the manga might also be disappointed that a lot of the manga's characters are either left out or shoved into the background.
Despite these unfortunate circumstances, I think that the anime more than does the manga justice. In fact, I find it to be an improvement over the manga. While some of the humor and silliness are there, the anime takes on a more serious tone, capitalizing more on the angst, mystery, and supernatural element of the story. The art and music are also absolutely beautiful! Descendants of Darkness has a superb soundtrack which is well worth downloading or even buying! Aside from the characters being beautiful, the monsters and magic are also magnificently rendered. Even though it isn't really a fighting anime, the action sequences should be awesome enough to please those who would otherwise be bored with the drama.
The series consists mostly of fairly mediocre characters, yet it has what I consider to be one of the greatest villains in anime history. Tsuzuki and Hisoka are the protagonists of our story. They are likable characters overall. Tsuzuki is a real sweety despite being a little bit dense and childlike at times. Hisoka has a little bit of an attitude problem at first, but once it becomes apparent where he is coming from, you can't help but sympathize with the guy. Watari and Tatsumi are minor characters who had significantly larger roles in the manga. For the most part, they are just there. They don't really add that much to the anime, but they don't detract from it either. The Gushoshin twins are the only characters that could really be considered annoying. This is mostly because they seem a bit out of place (being two cutesy little talking birds in an otherwise human cast).
Our antagonist Dr. Muraki gets his own paragraph since no couple of sentences could possibly do him justice. He is the subject of much admiration as well as loathing from DoD fans, and he deserves every bit of both. Practically everything he does is just horrific and despicable, but he is so cool and gorgeous and entertaining that you can almost forgive him for being the monster he is. He desires Tsuzuki's body both carnally and scientifically. The scientific reason is revealed later and it gives Muraki's character quite a bit more depth, though you are longing for much more once the anime ends.
While the show isn't technically shounen-ai (gay male romance), it contains a lot of hints and fanservice. It is very easy to read in an attraction between our two heroes. I personally believe in this attraction, but other fans are free to form their own interpretations. Muraki is much less ambiguous and regularly molests Tsuzuki. This lust Muraki has for Tsuzuki is clearly one-sided, but it makes for some rather hot homoerotic material (even though nothing overtly sexual actually happens).
The show masquerades a bit as a mystery series. In reality, the mysteries aren't really any big puzzle. As the audience, we basically know that Muraki is behind everything (with the exception of episodes 4-6). And while the story isn't particularly imaginative as far as anime goes, the characters and the art make it more than worthwhile. All in all, I can't think of any reason to dislike this series unless you're either homophobic or a hardcore manga snob. But we can't please everybody, can we? read more
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Prede
6 of 10 people found this review helpful
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11 of 13 episodes seen
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| Overall |
9 |
| Story |
8 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Character |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
Descendants of Darkness, also known as Yami no Matsuei, is a show I've seen multiple times, yet have not finished it. Which is a real shame, because I cannot review the conclusion. However for all anime I have the belief that the journey is more important then the destination, because some of the best anime ever made, have outright terrible endings. So without knowing how it ends, the journey is great! What a series. On to the review!
Plot: 8/10
While it's not exactly original, I really liked the story. This anime is about a group of shinigamis or Gods of Death, who deal with problems releated to the recently deceased human beings. The problems range from vampires, to mysterious murders, to issues in the main characters past. There is a overarching story, with a great main villian, but it's slowly developed, even though this is a relatively short anime. With only 13 episodes, it still takes it time with the main plot. An approach I liked, but could discourage many. If you didn't like the way "Witch Hunter Robin" handled it's plot, stay clear of this series.
Now this is a dark, gothic series, and I have a soft spot for those types of things. But I really enjoyed this show. From the first episode to the last episode I saw I can say I was never bored with it Now it's not fast paced, or action packed, but instead a character driven drama, with a very thought out plot. The writing is pretty strong though out, and the direction was decent too. Now there are some great action scenes, but this series is not based on action. Some of the scenes are very funny, and it's used to balance out the darker and more dramatic scenes very nicely.
I like the way this series handled the afterworld. It's a complex government bureaucracy, filled with lots of rules, guidlines, and red tape. An interesting take on what's to come once we are no longer of this world. To think after living a life in this world, what awaits us is some more government bureaucracrats! It's a little like the american Live Action movie "Beetlejuice" in that respect. I also liked how it shares similarities with police dramas and mysteries. Perhaps that's why I liked this show so much, two genres I love put together (Gothic Horror and Police Drama!). A lot of the show is devoted to solving the "cases" of the dead, and this leads to some longer-then-you'd expect archs, but they are all well worth the ride.
Now this is a yaoi title. The first time I saw this series, I was in denial for the entire time. As a straight male that sort of thing does not really interest me. However I was not repulsed at all thoughout the entire show. In fact I though the slight yaoi tendencies added to the show. It did not feel like it was pandering to the fangirls, but in fact just part of the show. I still feel like they slipped yaoi into this show without me noticing it half the time, and the other half of the time thinking it made the show more interesting, yet a little unsettleing. I mean what's worse then a villian who wants to kill you? How about a guy who wants to kill you, but first have sex with you? That would scare me to death!
Art/Animation: 7/10
Overall I found the art to be a disappointment. The backgrounds were nice looking but not detailed enough. The animation just didn't flow to well during scenes too. However the character designs were great! I really thought they put a lot of work into desiging each and every character. They look original and interesting looking. My only problem with the designs is one of the main characters, Hisoka Kurosaki, is supposely 16 years old, but looks much older. This was probally intentional however due to some of the more edgy scenes in the anime. The animation really improves during the short action scenes or fight scsnes, and it is during these times that everything on scene is really impressive. CGI is used from time to time, most notably in the Opening Sequence, and while dated by todays standards, looks really good. It looked even better years ago, and in my opinion gives it a nice edge to it other series of it's time didn't have. Still I think it could have been much better, given it's lenght. But it apparently did not have a huge budget. Still I can live with what we got in terms of animation.
Sound: 8/10
Music
The music in this series ranges from average to above average. While nothing too great, everything is listenable. The background music is really good at times, and fits. The opening theme song is really good in my opinion, and very original sounding. The ending theme was a disapointment though in my opinion.
English Dub
I thought the dub was pretty good, but not without it's problems. First let's adress the acting. This anime is very well acted. Dan Green and Liam O'Brien really outddid themselves with this one. They are some of my favorite voice actors, and this is why. They really pull off every line with expertise. The other actors do a great job, or at least about as much as we can expect. So if the acting is not the problem what is you say? The casting and some accent/vocal decisions made. Some of the actors seem very miscast in their roles, while easy to overlook does not help the production. However my bigest problem with the dub is the accents and vocal decisions. Soem characters speak with a faux british accent which sounds stupid most of the time, and a few of the characters sound like Mickey Mouse and Miney Mouse, or sound scary! While I can't blame them do to the designs of the characters (who do look very cartoony, as they aren't people but do act like people), I have to wonder if there was maybe another way these characters could have sounded. It's not a whipe though. I found it to be pretty good overall, but marked by bad casting decisions and vocal/accent decisions. I place the blame more on the ADR director then the actors however. Still if you enjoy dubs there is no reason not to listen to this one. It's a decent New York dub, very refreshing, but not without some problems. But if you like your subs, your probally better off sticking with them on this one.
Characters: 9/10
All the characters are interesting enough.While it does sort-of fall into the trap non-original characters for it's background cast, it's not really a bad thing in my opinion. The two main characters are likeable and a mystery to us at first. Which means we start to wonder how they got to where they are today, and eventually leads to us careing abou them. Which makes learning about their pasts much more interesting in my opinion. Mr. Tsuzuki is a cool dude, who likes his sweets! The viewer will probally associate with him, more then the angsty teen, Hisoka Kurosaki (I mean unless your an ansgty teen of course :P ). While Mr. Tsuzuki can be childish and playful at times, he is still a mature adult, and it's nice to see such a lead character. He's even a little admirable. Hisoka while angsty, is not anoying. Some may not really like him completely, but I found his history to be very interesting, and well though out. It helps explain his character, and why he is who he is. But the real star of the show is the main villian, Dr. Muraki . He is charismatic, yet creepy. Powerful yet has a weakness. Interesting, yet your scared to learn more about him! Easily the best villian in anime since Vicious in "Cowboy Bebop", and King Hamdo in "Now and Then, Here and There"! He's that good! This guy is freaken nuts, but in a way you think he's totally sane! Well worth watching this show just to see what totally disturbing and morally unsettling thing he does next.
Enjoyment: 10/10
I have to agree with the fangirls on this one! This is a very enjoyable and watchable show! While not groundbraking or remarkable, it's damn good entertainment! I really enjoyed watching this series, and hope to one day buy it on DVD ( I saw it multiple times on Anime Selects On Demand) and finish it finally. Shoujo horror (Hell Girl, Ghost Hunt, Red Garden, Vampire Princess Miyu, etc) always apeals to me for some reason(even though I'm a guy, go figure!), so this review is a little biased. Not to mention I love urban crime dramas. But still I think this show would be enjoyed by anyone, as long as they are not against seeing some slight yaoi. And as long as you don't need action scene followed by action scene, or riveting fast paced series you probally will enjoy this. If you like a good drama look no further then this well written little gem!
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Recommendations
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Both of these animes have the same supernatural dark themed atmosphere, and it has the same theme of having a strong bond between it's two male protagonists (yami no matsuei's shounen ai is much more exposed though). Both animes pertains to solving some mysterious cases too. I am 100% sure that you'll like Kuroshitsuji if you're a big fan of yami no matsuei.
Both shows play on the grimmer side of 'BL' style stories. They also delight in mysteries, wicked twists, and eccentric characters. Shinigami (Reapers) and Demons play a role in both stories, although at opposite sides. Shinigami are not all benevolent, and the Demon in Kuroshitsuji seems more noble then most other characters.
Kuroshitsuji has a more prevalent gothic atmosphere then Yami no Matsuei, but very similar priorities on character designs. Both shows put an effort into making the characters look good, but sometimes the animation gets a little off or doesn't look as ideal as desired. Some episodes also get pretty bad on fanservice compared to Yami no Matsuei and can easily be omitted (In my case this was 7 - 9). But otherwise the show is very solid, and delivers a very befitting finale.
Some characters in Yami no Matsuei, like Hisoka or Muraki, have similarities to ones from Kuroshitsuji. Hisoka's tragic past seems oddly similar to Ciel, the main character of Kuroshitsuji, as does his cold behavior at the beginning of the series. The seductive villain Muraki is somewhat similar to Sebastien, Ciel's butler, but of course it's not nearly so simple as that. There are many nuances to these characters then would be first let on, much like in Yami no Matsuei.
The story in Kuroshitsuji does not get darker in theme until episode 4, so if the mood whiplash between comedy and drama bothers you it does go away. Unfortunately the lighter moments don't seem to blend in as well as they did in Yami no Matsuei, but they can be managed. All else fails, pay more attention to character behavior then the poorly done 'jokes.' Kuroshitsuji can be silly, and over the top but it is a fun ride once it finally settles down.
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hot guys using magic tricks + another love story between cruel killer and sexy humanity protector
Apart from the shounen-ai overtones, Tokyo Babylon and Descendants of Darkness offer solid entertainment as far as supernatural thrillers go. Mixing spells with detective work, these anime share the same vibe.
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Opening Theme"Eden" by To Destination
Ending Theme"Love Me" by The Hong Kong Knife
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